include Paul Schneider in any capacity after his two seasons as regular cast member as Mark Brendanawicz. Schneider left the series, and though Schur claimed that both the producers and Schneider were interested in having him return for guest appearances in future episodes, Schneider stated that he was not interested in returning and had never been contacted about it. The final scene between Leslie and Mark in "Freddy Spaghetti", in which the two sit together at Lot 48, mirrors their scenes together in the first season finale, "Rock Show", in which the two shared a kiss while overlooking the lot while it was still a construction pit. Schur said of the scene, "It's great because Leslie and Mark, it was such a disastrous moment last time (at the pit) and he didn't really respect her, and a lot's happened in a year." Goor said of using that setting, "I liked the symmetry of having it play a critical, and opposite role in this finale. Last year, they sat on the bench and kissed, and it seemed like they might be getting back together. This year, they sat on the bench and Mark kissed Leslie goodbye." The bench they sit in during that scene is the same one they sat on during their kiss scene in "Rock Show". Throughout the second season, that bench was in Leslie's office. Schur said, "We decided that in the reality of the show she brought it to the lot for this moment. It's a little bit of a stretch, but, you know." "Freddy Spaghetti" marked the second appearances by Adam Scott and Rob Lowe as state auditors sent to solve Pawnee's budget problems. Lowe's Chris Traeger character is energetic, eccentric and overly cheerful, whereas Scott's Ben Wyatt is more pragmatic and realistic. Scott was always intended to become a regular cast member starting in the third season, while Lowe was originally expected to appear only in a few more episodes in a guest role. However, after those episodes were filmed, Lowe later joined the show as a regular cast member. Lowe improvised many aspects of his character, including when he handed Ben a water bottle and said, "You should hydrate," and when he clapped after Leslie sang at the concert, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands." Additionally, the episode was the second appearance of Natalie Morales as Lucy, a Pawnee bartender